LSU: Miles Ahead of the Curve

Can we please start recognizing Les Miles as the best coach in college football? The general of the No. 6 LSU Tigers engineered another dramatic victory over No. 10 Auburn on Saturday night, guiding his squad to a thrilling 26-21 victory for LSU's first win at Jordan-Hare Stadium since 1998. The winner of this grudge match has represented the West division in the SEC championship game in six of the last eight seasons.

Early in the game, fans caught another glimpse of the slightly crazed nature of Miles' coaching strategies that has led to the Tigers' recent SEC dominance. He called for an onside kick after their first touchdown of the game, and the call completely caught Auburn offguard. Despite enduring a three-and-out, Miles had reiterated the point that was made in last season's contest between these bitter rivals: he will do anything at anytime to win. The mentality permeates the entire coaching staff. The halfback pass call by offensive coordinator Gary Crowton to give LSU its first lead was gutsy and brilliant. Keiland Williams' pass to Demetrius Byrd, the hero of last year's Battle of the Tigers, put LSU on top 17-14.

Backup quarterback Jarrett Lee settled into the game beautifully after Harvard transfer Andrew Hatch was knocked out of the game with a concussion. Much like Patrick Cowan of UCLA in the thrilling Bruins victory over Tennessee on Labor Day night, Lee struggled mightily in the first half. But on the late third-quarter drive that gave LSU the lead, he hit Brandon LaFell twice with perfect passes on the game-changing drive before the 39-yard touchdown to Chris Mitchell. Lee directed the offense again and eventually hit Brandon LaFell for an 18-yard game-winning touchdown with 1:03 remaining when they only needed a field goal--shades of last season. Lee finished 11-for-22 for 182 yards and two touchdowns, and LSU gained 284 of its 389 yards in the second half.

Charles Scott rushed for 132 rough-and-tough yards against a defense that was unpenetrable in a 3-2 win at Mississippi State last weekend. LSU had never had a 100-yard rusher at Jordan-Hare Stadium before Saturday night.

Auburn moved to LSU's 47 on the final drive, but quarterback Chris Todd's desperation fourth-and-25 pass came up short of a first down.

Truly a gutsy performance for the LSU Tigers, led by the best coach in college football, their commander Les Miles.

Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis claimed throughout the preseason that the Fighting Irish were going to pound the football. Well, the Irish currently rank 111th nationally in rushing, averaging a meager 2.6 yards per carry, up only .5 from last season's 2.1 average. Weis blames poor line play and the subpar blocking by the tight ends and wideouts. Could the Purdue defense be the balm for the sluggish Irish rushing attack? The unit is giving up nearly 200 yards per game on the ground, so look for more Robert Hughes and James Aldridge out of the Irish backfield on Saturday.

Huge win on the road for Boise State on Saturday, as the Broncos went to Autzen Stadium and battled the raucous crowd to snag a victory over the Oregon Ducks. Okay, so I know Oregon was down to essentially its fifth-string quarterback. But I expected more from the Ducks' secondary in this game. Freshman quarterback Kellen Moore looked really good for the Broncos.

Ronnie Brown helped Joey Porter's words stand up on Sunday as the halfback single-handedly beat the Patriots. Was Bill Belichick outcoached in this game? Absolutely, and the general admitted it, too.

And lastly, the United States finally recaptured the Ryder Cup from the Europeans, reclaiming the Cup for the first time since 1999. Hmmm, teamwork and enthusiasm really does go a long way, as we have seen the Europeans demonstrate every year they whipped the Americans. It didn't hurt this time that Lee Westwood, Sergio Garcia and Paddy Harrington completely flamed out.